Teaching Ballet Online

Amid stay at home orders and social distancing, what are dance teachers to do?  Is teaching dance online a possibility? Some schools and teachers have been attracted to online teaching for obvious financial reasons and we must respect their motivations. But, can an activity both physical and artistic be taught through video recorded demonstrations and self-corrections only?   

There has been an outpour of online classes and videos since the Covid-19 outbreak. Some of these classes are interesting and deserve to be shared with our students, while others will hopefully quickly dissolve into the webosphere and if the purpose of publishing an online video is truly to teach dance, then perhaps we should first think about – how we learn to dance.

Dance teachers are in the trade of forming correct muscle memories, a lengthy and repetitious process that must be completed correctly. The key word in this last sentence is “correctly”.  The margin for error when working muscle memory is thin and bad habits are difficult to correct.  So, can we teach safely, honestly and effectively, if we are not in the studio with our students? In my opinion these issues cannot be ignored by the teacher who decides to teach online classes and before turning on the camera, it is necessary to define what the objective for the on line class is. If we do not want to waste our time, we must also remember that the attention span of the online viewer is limited. Indeed, most of us are not trained film makers and we will have to captivate our audience with a content that is both clear and concise. Trying to teach too much online would be a mistake and perhaps even a dangerous one, for that could be the source of bad habits formation which could also lead to injuries.

In order to teach safely and successfully, I have come to realize that focusing on specific aspects of technique, analyzing and demonstrating possibly from various angles are a necessity. A video is a two dimensional medium therefore it is important to deconstruct the movement with clear oral instructions to compensate for the loss of clarity that is inevitable when you transform three-dimensional visual information into a flat screen image. Paradoxically, teaching online forces the instructor to use a more analytical and somewhat less visual approach to teaching, which is actually very helpful and prevents students from merely “mimicking” without truly decomposing and understanding a movement. As a general rule floor exercises work very well for the beginners, while barre exercises should be aimed at the more advanced students.

Teaching on line classes is not a one size fits all. Unlike what happens in a dance studio where each student gets individual attention at some point or another, while watching a video a student gets no special attention at all and this is why the videos we make must have a target audience in mind. Also, as we teachers know, we must not hesitate to repeat ourselves. So, it is ok to state the obvious when we record our instructions. If the viewers already know what we are telling them, it will not hurt if they hear it again and if they have not heard it yet, they will definitely need to hear it for a first time.

As a teacher, this time of confinement has forced me to think about online classes not so much as a replacement, but rather as a supplement to my teaching. With a discipline like dance, online videos are likely to replace the soon to be obsolete printed student’s manual. These online videos will not replace the unique learning environment provided by a traditional ballet class taught in a studio, however, making our own videos could be a continuation of what happens in the studio and a way to offer our students the possibility to practice at home between classes with the help of safe and sound instructions.

Obviously not every dance teacher has the time, the equipment or the willingness to make videos, so using videos made available by some reputable companies and schools are also a solution to integrate online teaching to the work accomplished during class.  Major schools have online videos that can be very useful to students too. As a dance instructor for a community college located away from a large city and with little exposure to live performances, I tell my students to use the internet to discover and learn.  Beyond the learning of technique, the internet can also help them get exposed directly to what is happening away from home.  Watching the Vaganova, or the Cecchetti method being taught by some of the most qualified instructors in the field can certainly be of interest to our students.

The internet is a wonderful tool that, I believe we must use in order to further our students’ knowledge. Internet has its dangers, such as the time wasted watching useless material with little educational or artistic value, but when used wisely and with proper directions, it becomes a wonderful window onto a vast field with a great perspective of what dance was through history and is throughout the world today.